The Big Dig, a Boston engineering boondoggle that's national news mostly because you helped us pay for it, is basically a death trap. It's killed people already, and some precariously perched lights were preparing to off a few more.

Lucky for us (Boston residents, Logan airport traffic and daily visitors), an investigative report by the Boston Globe has sped up the maintenance of this poorly constructed tunnel system, which was apparently on the verge of sending a few more immense 110-lb. lighting fixtures into the roadway of the Ted Williams tunnel seemingly any day now.

And yes, I said "a few more." One already fell last winter, although no one was hurt, which is great because the tunnel and its surrounding guard rails are already responsible for at least two deaths in the last few years.

Imagine that, a group of corrupt politicians lying to us about the safety of a project built by their corrupt union goons. Who'da thunk it?

Be sure to click on over to Gizmodo for the rest, and to read the hilarity of commenters suggesting that this is the eeeevil private sector's fault. As if union-dominated companies with close familial ties to Boston's political machine are as private-sector as Wal-mart and apple pie.

You know how the old saying goes: The union-built Big Dig has killed more people than my Ruger!

On April 5, 2010, an explosion at Massey owned Performance Coal Co. mine in Montcoal, West Virginiaresulted in the deaths of 29 miners. The explosion, which has become known as the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster, is the worst mining disaster in 40 years, with a greater loss of life than in any mining accident since the 1970s. Mine safety investigators are still searching for an exact cause, though the methane explosion, largely preventable by proper ventilation, is being closely examined. Investigators are also reviewing the record of safety violations at the Upper Big Branch mine, which amassed more than 1,100 violations in the past three years, many of them serious, including 50 of them in March 2010 for violations including improper ventilation of methane and poor escape routes. Federal regulators had ordered portions of the mine closed 60 times over the year preceding the explosion.[24] In addition, the FBI has reportedly also launched a probe, investigating possible criminal wrongdoing at the mine, including criminal negligence and possible bribery of federal regulators.[25] Questions about Massey Energy's mining safety practices, along with questions about CEO Don Blankenship's excessive spending on court appointment campaigns, are coming from the public, the Dept of Labor, and President Obama.

Anchor handling tugs combat the fire on the Deepwater Horizon while the United States Coast Guard searches for missing crew. Public protest in New Orleans following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.On 20 April 2010, the semi-submersible exploratory offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon exploded after a blowout; it sank two days later, killing 11 people. This blowout in the Macondo Prospect field in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in a partially capped oil well one mile below the surface of the water. Experts estimate the gusher to be flowing at 35,000 to 60,000 barrels per day (5,600 to 9,500 m3/d) of oil.[90][91][92] The exact flow rate is uncertain due to the difficulty of installing measurement devices at that depth and is a matter of ongoing debate.[93] The resulting oil slick covers at least 2,500 square miles (6,500 km2), fluctuating from day to day depending on weather conditions.[94] It threatens the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, and Florida.

#2 Brian C. Ledbetter 12-Jul-2011

Accidents are a part of life, I'd never even suggest that it's even remotely possible to eliminate all of them.

Corruption also has a long and constant reign on the entire duration of human history, so it's not surprising to find out that it might have played a role (the alleged bribes) in West Virginia.

So what would your solution to corruption in public works projects be? Obviously, packing the Big Dig with union workers wasn't the magic fix liberals claimed it would be (with my apologies for the relatively low-quality link -- I've got limited Internet access from where I'm at).